Sandwich panels (e.g., a core structure sandwiched between two layers of material, or skins) are often used in the construction of aircraft, because they have high strength to weight ratios. FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional sandwich panel 11, shown schematically in cross-section. Sandwich panel 11 may include a core 13 sandwiched between a first skin 15 and a second skin 17. First skin 15 and second skin 17 may be rigid or semi-rigid skins, and are typically relatively thin compared to core 13, which is typically formed of a lightweight material. In the aerospace industry, such sandwich panels may be used to assemble the interior main structure and/or secondary structures of the aircraft, and/or may be used to form floor boards, wall panels, galleys, stow bins, overhead compartments, lavatories, and/or other structures within the aircraft. Such sandwich panels are also used in other industries. For example, such sandwich panels may be useful in the aerospace, automotive, electronic, construction, military, recreation, and/or motorsport industries.
Damage to sandwich panels is typically repaired by flowing or injecting an adhesive material, such as a potting compound or epoxy, into or at the damaged area. However, the quality of these repairs may be unpredictable due to air that may become entrapped between the potting compound and a panel skin (e.g., second skin 17). The entrapped air may therefore inhibit the ability of the potting compound to completely fill the void in the sandwich panel.
Air trapped within the potting compound (e.g., porosity) may also result in unpredictable repair quality. Potting compound is often formed by mixing two parts together, and such mixing often incorporates air into the resulting mixture. Existing methods for deaerating (e.g., removing entrapped or encapsulated air from, also referred to as degassing) the potting compound involve the use of expensive, non-portable machines that apply centrifugal force to the potting compound to remove trapped air. In addition to these disadvantages to the use of such machines, the deaeration process must also be performed outside of the mechanism or device being used to place the compound in the void or other intended location.